Health minister supports ending sick note requirement in P.E.I. employment law

Island workers whose employers ask them for a sick note to take medical time off could see that requirement removed from provincial legislation as early as this fall. 

Changing the Employment Standards Act would be a small step toward easing overburdened frontline health-care workers' administrative tasks, said Green Party MLA Matt MacFarlane on Friday.

It would also prevent other P.E.I. employees from having to wait at their doctor's office or emergency departments for a medical certificate when they are too sick to work.

During question period Friday in the Legislature, MacFarlane asked Health Minister Mark McLane if he would support removing employers' sick-note option that's laid out in the province's Employment Standards Act. 

"I don't think that there's many employers that require [sick notes] anymore," McLane answered. "But if they do, I would support the removal of them for sure."

While the Employment Standards Act allows employers to ask workers for a sick note after three consecutive days of illness, it's up to the individual employer to decide whether it implements such a policy. 

According to the provincial law, "The employer may require the employee to provide the employer with a certificate signed by a medical practitioner certifying that the employee is or was unable to work due to illness or injury."

MacFarlane said he's been questioning the Progressive Conservative government on issues related to health worker recruitment and retention. But he said alleviating the need for doctors and nurse practitioners to write sick notes would be a small step in easing their workloads.

He said he's heard from an ER doctor who told him a day doesn't go by without someone waiting in the emergency room just to get a sick note.

"To use the saying, it's low-hanging fruit," MacFarlane said. "Let's start picking away at some of the more accessible, simpler issues that are placing burdens on our doctors and nurse practitioners … to ease the lives and the burdens that's currently being placed on our health-care practitioners."

He added such a small step should not detract from "working through some of those more systemic challenges" facing Island health care.

Let's start picking away at some of the more accessible, simpler issues that are placing burdens on our doctors and nurse practitioners.— Green Party MLA Matt MacFarlane

On Friday, the health minister stopped short of committing to changing the act to remove the sick-note language, but he did say he's in favour of anything that reduces physicians' administrative burdens.

MacFarlane said he was encouraged by the McLane's comments, and said making the move could help free up more time to treat patients. 

As for employers, the Green MLA said workplace policies should be based on trusting employees. 

"We don't build policy around the potential that people are going to abuse something," MacFarlane said. "If someone is really sick to the point where they can't come into work after a period of time, chances are they're going to be seeing a doctor anyway — and using that opportunity to get better, to get treatment.

"In the course of that consultation, a note can be provided."